Space Facts for Kids

Sunsets on Mars are blue because Mars's thin atmosphere scatters red light differently than Earth's.

Jupiter's Great Red Spot is a storm bigger than Earth that has been raging for over 300 years.

Scientists discovered a planet called 55 Cancri e that may be covered in diamonds.

Voyager 1, launched in 1977, is the farthest human-made object from Earth — over 15 billion miles away.

One year on Neptune lasts about 165 Earth years — it hasn't completed one orbit since it was discovered in 1846.

There are more trees on Earth (about 3 trillion) than stars in the Milky Way (about 200 billion).

The Moon is slowly drifting away from Earth at a rate of about 1.5 inches per year.

The International Space Station travels at about 17,500 mph, orbiting Earth every 90 minutes.

You can't cry properly in space — tears form into floating blobs that stick to your face.

Mercury has almost no atmosphere, so temperatures swing from 800°F during the day to -290°F at night.